| Sanggunian ng Pambansang Seguridad | |
 Official Seal | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | July 1, 1950; 75 years ago (1950-07-01) |
| Preceding agency |
|
| Jurisdiction | Philippines |
| Headquarters | Malacañang Palace,Manila,Philippines |
| Motto | Kaunlaran, Katatagan, Kapayapaan ("Development, Stability, Peace") |
| Employees | 104 (2024)[1] |
| Agency executives |
|
| Parent agency | Office of the President |
| Website | National Security Council of the Philippines |
 |
|---|
 Philippines portal |
TheNational Security Council (NSC;Filipino:Sanggunian ng Pambansang Seguridad) is the principal forum of thepresident of the Philippines consideringnational security andforeign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and cabinet officials.
The NSC consists of two distinct bodies – the Council Proper and the Secretariat.
The Council Proper is a collegial body chaired by the President. It includes concerned officials of the Cabinet and Congress, as members, as well as other government officials and private citizens who may be invited by the president.
The Council was created during the administration of PresidentElpidio Quirino through Executive Order (EO) No. 330, dated July 1, 1950. It was reorganized by virtue of EO No. 115, series of 1986.
The NSC Secretariat is a permanent body that provides technical support to the council proper. It is headed by the Director-General, who is also appointed as the National Security Adviser.
Commonwealth Act No. 1 is the original policy basis of the national security program of theRepublic of the Philippines. That act mandated the establishment of a Council of National Defense to advise the President on all matters of national defense policy. This council's membership previously consists of the President, all living former Presidents, the Vice President, the head of each executive department, the Chief of Staff, and six other members to be designated by the President.[2][3]
Subsequent toWorld War II, which included a period during which the Commonwealth government operated as agovernment in exile, and subsequent to therecognition of theRepublic of the Philippines as a sovereign nation, PresidentElpidio Quirino established the NSC as a body so named.[4]
The1987 Constitution mandatescivilian control of the military and establishes the President as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The President also heads the NSC, ostensibly the policy-making and advisory body for matters connected with national defense. Former PresidentCorazon Aquino reestablished the NSC in 1986 through an executive order that provided for a NSC Director to advise the President on national security matters and for a NSC Secretariat. The Council itself is composed of the President and at least nine others: theVice President; theAFP chief of staff; NSC Director; theExecutive Secretary; and the Secretaries ofForeign Affairs,National Defense,Interior and Local Government,Justice, andLabor and Employment (called ministers before 1987). By the end of 1990, however, the NSC had only convened twice.[5]
Responsibility for national security was vested in the Department of National Defense. The principal functions of the department in 1991 were to defend the state against internal and external threats and, through thePhilippine National Police, to maintain law and order. The Secretary of National Defense, by law a civilian, was charged with advising the president on defense matters and developing defense policy.
In 2002, PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyo won support from her Cabinet and the Congress for the deployment of American soldiers in the Philippines as part of the war on terrorism. She convened a meeting of the NSC to pull wavering officials - including her Vice President,Teofisto Guingona Jr. - into line and smooth over differences in her administration over the issue. Arroyo insisted her oppositions to marshal support for her stance to back a United States-led campaign against terrorism, not only to implement a unanimousUN Security Council resolution calling on UN members to bring the perpetrators to justice but also the Philippines' strategic alliance with the US and to assist the global campaign to end the scourge of terrorism.[6]
In 2016, the PresidentRodrigo Duterte convened the NSC and discussed his major initiatives: thewar on illegal drugs, peace talks withcommunist andMoro rebels, and theterritorial disputes with China.[7]
In January 2025, PresidentBongbong Marcos issued Executive Order No. 81 effectively removing the Vice President, as well as past presidents of the Philippines from the council.[8]
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The National Security Advisor and Director-General serve as Chief of Staff and adviser for Special Concerns in National Security to the President. The NSA has a rank of Secretary in the government. The current Director-General and National Security Adviser is SecretaryEduardo Año.
The NSC's function is to advise the President with respect to the integration of domestic, foreign, and military policies relating to national security. It also serves as the President's principal arm for coordinating these policies among various government departments and agencies in matters involving national security.
As provided in the Administrative Code of 1987, the NSC is composed of the President as chairman, the Vice President, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, the Executive Secretary, the Secretary of National Defense, the Secretary of Justice, the Secretary of Labor and Employment, the Secretary of Local Governments, the National Security Director, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and such other government officials and private individuals as the President may appoint.[9]
In 1992, PresidentFidel Ramos reorganized the NSC to include the Secretaries ofScience and Technology,Trade and Industry,Finance, andEnvironment and Natural Resources, and the Director-General of theNational Economic and Development Authority.[10]
In 2001, PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyo amended Ramos' Executive Order and reconstituted the NSC to its present form.[11] In 2024, PresidentBongbong Marcos revised the composition of the NSC by excluding the Vice President and former presidents.[12]
As of September 17, 2025, the members are as follows:
The NSC Executive Committee (EXECOM) reviews national security and defense problems and formulates positions or solutions for consideration by the council. It determines the Council's agenda and order of business and ensures that decisions of the Council are clearly communicated to the agencies concerned. It advises the President on the implementation of decisions.[11] As of January 2025, the EXECOM's members are:
| Name | Start | End | Duration | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emanuel V. Soriano[13] | February 1, 1987 | February 15, 1989 | 2 years, 14 days | Aquino |
| Office vacant from February 15 to February 17, 1989. | ||||
| Rafael M. Ileto[14] | February 17, 1989 | June 30, 1992 | 3 years, 134 days | |
| Jose T. Almonte | July 1, 1992 | June 30, 1998 | 5 years, 364 days | Ramos |
| Alexander P. Aguirre | July 1, 1998 | January 19, 2001 | 2 years, 202 days | Estrada |
| Office vacant from January 19 to February 19, 2001. | Arroyo | |||
| Roilo S. Golez | February 19, 2001 | January 4, 2004 | 2 years, 319 days | |
| Office vacant from January 4 to February 11, 2004. | ||||
| Norberto B. Gonzales | February 11, 2004 | August 31, 2004 | 202 days | |
| Hermogenes E. Ebdane, Jr. | August 22, 2004 | February 14, 2005 | 176 days | |
| Norberto B. Gonzales | February 15, 2005 | December 22, 2009 | 4 years, 310 days | |
| Milo S. Ibrado, Jr. | December 23, 2009 | June 30, 2010 | 189 days | |
| Office vacant from June 30 to July 5, 2010. | Aquino III | |||
| Cesar P. Garcia, Jr. | July 5, 2010 | June 30, 2016 | 5 years, 361 days | |
| Hermogenes C. Esperon, Jr. | July 1, 2016 | June 30, 2022 | 5 years, 364 days | Duterte |
| Clarita R. Carlos | July 1, 2022 | January 14, 2023 | 198 days | Marcos Jr. |
| Eduardo M. Año | January 14, 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 282 days | |
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